SALEM, Ore. (AP) — A power failure that left parts of the Oregon State Penitentiary without electricity for nearly 12 hours meant inmate visits and education classes were canceled Monday.
Prison spokeswoman Michelle Whitney Dodson says penitentiary staff and an outside contractor fixed the problem about 3 p.m. Monday.
Dodson says underground, high-voltage power lines failed early Monday morning, tripping a breaker and knocking out power to the north part of the Salem prison.
Affected areas included the physical plant, industries program and a security gate.
The penitentiary opened in 1866. The spokeswoman says the existing electrical system probably dates to the 1940s.
